Portofino Deposit Question??

[LilyStar]

Hello there

Was wondering if someone could help me out. On February 23, I made a reservation at the Portofino by calling Universal directly. They told me that there was a 1 nights deposit plus tax due at the time of reservation. I gave them my CC number and exp. date.

To date, nothing has been charged to my credit card from Universal. It's been just over 2 weeks. Is it normal procedure to wait that long to charge the deposit? I called Universal to make sure they still had my reservation and they do (which is good!). I assume that when someone tells me they're going to charge my card, they're not going to wait 2 weeks to do it. Has anyone had any experience w/ this?

Thanks!

 

[pluto826]

I don't think that they charge your card right away, but rather if you don't show up or don't cancel your reservation within the allowed time frame, then they charge you for the first night with the credit card you gave them.

 

[Kathyandtyler]

Portofino has always charged my credit card upon making the reservations.

If you haven't gotten a confirmation in the mail, I would call and find out what the status of your reservation is.

Kathy

 

[corvair]

I have never gotten a confirmation in the mai from PBH...amy

 

[AlisonB]

We booked Hard Rock last year for 5 nights and never got charged the deposit, and we have PBH and RPR booked this year - same thing - no deposit charged.

 

[sherries]

We have ressies at RPH for July. The charge went on our debit card within a couple of days. We also received a confirmation via email within a couple of days. I'd call back and ask for a confirmation number for the reservation, or request that they send you something either by email or regular mail.

 

[LilyStar]

Thanks everyone for sharing your experiences. Isn't it odd that sometimes they do charge a deposit...others they don't?! I would think that they would stay consistent.

For everyone who asked, yes I do indeed have a confirmation number for the reservation. When I call and ask them if they have received my deposit they always say, oh yes we are showing you have paid your deposit. Furthermore, I called last night and they told me that if my card had not gone through (or whatever) they would have a message on their screen telling them. No messages on mine. I asked them if they could tell if my card had been charged yet and they always tell me it's not actually THEM who charge the cards. It is done by a different set of people. But they again always assure me that they are showing me as paid.

It's all very weird. And I know for a fact that they have not charged my card because it's my debit/mastercard and I have checked both online and at my bank....nothing charged by Universal.

I guess I'm irritated about this whole thing because I will have closed this bank account by the time I get to Universal. I have elected to open a different bank account and the direct deposit from my paycheck will now be going to that new account at the new bank. In the meantime, I am going to have to leave the $250 or so in that old account just in case at some point in time Universal realizes they haven't charged my card!

Thanks for your help anyone. If anyone else would like to share their experiences, the more...the better! Thanks again for everyone's help.

 

[AlexandNessa]

I can tell you that last year I called and booked a room at the HRH in June for a September stay, and my credit card was charged a one night deposit immediately.

This year, I booked the PBH online in January for an October stay and was not charged a deposit - yet, anyway, even though my credit card was required to secure the ressie.

 

[pomcoach]

I also called about 3 weeks ago and booked the Hard Rock for Christmas Time 2004. They said the first night's stay would be charged, plus taxes, approx. $299.
Nothing has been charged to my card. I called yesterday to make sure we have a reservation. Yes, and she read it back to me. Kind of strange, but we are glad nothing's been charged to our card. So we don't care. Maybe they do the charge when it's closer to our dates. We are 9 months away right now.
You could always call back and give them a new Credit Card number, when you change bank accounts, or even call and explain the problem.
Pomcoach

 

[dpayne1969]

i have resev.for Nov.2004 and we are staying at RPR and my credit was charged the 1 nites deposit.I did not get any mail from them but i did get an email with my confirmation which i have printed out and stashed away in my suitcase just in case there is any discrepency.I was glad and will be calling back next week to see if i can get 1 more nite paid for with my credit card!

 

[WCMouse]

As much as I love Universal Studios, etc. as well as the Hotels there, these kinds of things seem to happen there with some frequency. We have stayed at many Loews properties and been to the Universal parks... and without exception something like this has happened on all cases. Sometimes there have been immediate charges other times none until after. Some restaurant charges were months after.... all in all a great place to visit and stay, but patience and time are often required with them... love them though...